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Apple has been making small, iterative improvements to iOS over the years, but this time it’s different. Cupertino has pulled out all the stops to rethink the way iOS should look and behave. Android has traditionally metamorphosed quickly, peeling off layers of awkwardness to become something truly usable. However, this trend too is reversing. Android hasn’t changed much in the last year with a few small bumps, all called Jelly Bean.

So is this Apple’s chance to level the playing field when it comes to features? Skeuomorphism is over, and users demand advanced features. Let’s take a look at how Android 4.3 and iOS 7 stack up.

Sharing is caring

Apple added AirDrop file sharing to OS X a while back, but now it’s coming to iOS. AirDrop is a way to easily send files between iOS devices over WiFi. Two devices negotiate the file transfer over Bluetooth, then push files across WiFi, which is much faster. Apple is clearly promoting this feature hard by giving it a prominent position in the Control Center slide-up panel.

Apple will probably face some challenges with AirDrop early on as app developers slowly add support for it. Android’s sharing features are generally more robust than iOS, but definitely less consistent. Apps can easily plug into the universal Android sharing menu.

The parallel to AirDrop on iOS for Android is Beam. This is a feature that pushes files between devices by negotiating a connection via NFC. Simply tap two phones together, and you’re done. Android 4.3 improved the stability and usability of Beam on supported devices, but some phones still have buggy NFC chips.

Unlike AirDrop, Beam doesn’t need WiFi. The files are pushed directly from one device to the other with Bluetooth. It’s a bit slower, though. Samsung has its own take on Beam called S Beam which uses WiFi Direct to do the same thing, but much faster. This can be replicated on other Android devices with an app (WiFi Direct is supported by Android).

Multitasking

This has long been a sore spot for iOS users, even after Apple relented and added limited multitasking way back in iOS 3. Double-tapping the home button used to produce a small tray of app icons down at the bottom of the screen, but no more. With iOS 7, users get a big, scrollable carousel of screenshots for running apps. Closing apps in the old interface was a super-tedious process of long-pressing then tapping tiny flags in the corner. Now you can just swipe apps off the screen to close them.

Android has used a similar system for the last few years, starting with 4.0 in 2011. Hit the multitasking button (or whatever mechanism your phone uses) and you get a list of running apps with screenshots. The exact look and feel varies with device, but the stock UI is definitely not as attractive as Apple’s take. Some OEMs change the look a bit, but the essentials are all there.

The other side of multitasking is the way apps run in the background. Apple added a strictly prescribed form of app multitasking a few years ago, but it is expanding in iOS 7. Apps will be able to update in the background based on intelligent scheduling at the OS level. If you always use certain apps at certain times, iOS 7 could allow them to be ready in the background. That sounds great, if it works.

Android has always taken a laissez faire approach to multitasking. You want to run that app in the background? Cool, it’s done. Hit the home button? No problem, the app is still there. This has led to some battery life concerns in the past, but more recent versions of Android have improved matters. You definitely have more power with the Android system, but there is potential for apps to abuse this system.

Notifications and Control Center

It’s no secret that Apple aped the Android notification shade when it created Notification Center — it just didn’t do a very good job. With iOS 7, Apple is fixing thing up a lot. The pull-down is now organized into sections for today, all, and missed. The “today” tab has a kind of Google Now vibe. There is weather, appointments, and stock updates. It certainly doesn’t do any of the cool predictive searching that Google Now does, though.

Android still has excellent notifications, but it goes a bit further than iOS 7. Android notifications are dynamic and can live-update to display new information. Apps can produce expanded notifications with graphs, images, and other bits of data. There are also buttons that act as action triggers in notifications. However, notifications are just in one long list on Android. Clearing notifications is done with a swipe, which is easier than Apple’s two-tap solution. Lastly, Android will add important Google Now items to the notification bar, which is very handy. The notification situation is essentially universal on Android.

Apple is finally saving us from digging into the settings just to turn off WiFi. Control Center is a new slide-up panel in iOS 7 that has toggles for various radios, brightness control, playback controls, and app shortcuts. Android devices have various ways of doing the same things. Many Android handsets have Quick Settings, which has some toggles and shortcuts. Samsung has a toggle bar in the main notification shade, as well.

Control Center improves things hugely, and it’s probably a match for Android’s approach to exposing settings. Well, if you ignore home screen widgets.

Next page: Camera, photo management, and whether a flat UI is really all that

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Nicolas Klein

Android haven´t change for a while because non (Google or Apple) can think of anything new to do. Most of iOS changes are things that were either already available on Android, or some that Google did not bother incorporating since their were apps that already do that. Not saying that the app thing was not the same for iOS since most things also existed for them as well.
Incorporating apps into the ecosystem is important; but I’m still expecting something new from any of them. Either well worked windows for the Tablet OS, or something completely new. But the truth is, looking at desktop´s OS stagnation, there isn´t much to be done.

Guest

I agree. While I believe there is always more to be done, I can see things slowing down (for all companies involved).

Customers are expecting loads of new features with every update, but if companies try to match that expectation, customers cry “Bloat!! Gimmicks!!” And the features remain largely unused.

At least for now all I really expect from this point on are refinements and polishing.

aussieaussieaussie

a good example is the flashlight app, I have a great one but apple have felt the need to include one why?

Paul Newman

There is a flashlight built into iOS7

Aplmustdie

Shouldn’t the title be Apple copies Android?

Diedrich

Every one of my friends are like oh mg god its i07 is so amazing. While I sit back and explain that android has had that for quite a while. Nice copy of android apple, real creative.

sauerquint

Now Apple will sue (again) Samsung or Google for doing a better job. Ya gotta keep the legal department busy doing something, after all. How else are they going to make their bonus?

Jeffrey Scott Anderson

Exactly! God forbid that they innovate to get sales . . . Lawyers are so much better

SomeGuy

I like how you android fanboys are so ridiculously defensive. Oh android had it before? Well I bet that made everyone throw out their iOS device.

I love these Apple fan boys. How quickly they forget Steve Jobs was King of the thieves. The only difference is he wasn’t content with just stealing . . . he then turned around and patented everything he stole. Then sued every one else. A bit hypocritical to me.

SomeGuy

Funny how android fanboys now are just like iOS fanboys a few years ago. Jumping at the smallest thing, thinking you can make a difference. Funny. And sad.

On the OS side, Microsoft is probably the only one making major visible changes. iOS on the other hand as looked the same basically since it came out. Android over the last few major versions has made large leaps. Even ahead of Microsoft and iOS in terms of UI.

I think Android core is not as nice as say HTC Sense or Cryogen mod.

Epic Tea

the UI really doesn’t matter with Nova Launcher Prime being the # 5 top paid app in the Play Store, it offers far more customizing than most roms and doesn’t require root.

I prefer Android as google intended it, currently have a Galaxy S4 rooted with Cyan 10.2(4.3) flashed with nova launcher running on top and I coded in soft key’s just like on the nexus 4 using root browser after disabling the home button and backlight buttons.

Im coming to the point where I just want a Nexus Experience because it is far better than any other, i would say Cyan is 2nd and Sense is 3rd definitely not as good, because Cyan has bugs from time to time with it being a rom. Although apparently they are officially going to become a software with Oppo as their Manufacture.

viciouzex

I don’t mind if the OS doesn’t change drastically. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. If you look at the differences in jelly bean from 4.1 to 4.3. They are not different by a bunch. They just improved stability and moved things around a bit to be easier to handle.

Epic Tea

thats because the name is the same, usually a newer name implies bigger changes with android and most of the time their unseen, or more function based than software, because with android’s ability to customize almost anything (see mycolorscreen.com) changing the OS is not top priority when people will change it to their liking anyways.

Epic Tea

android is highly customizable so making changes isn’t really necessary with the level of freedom (see mycolorscreen.com) although I think they could give us even more freedom and let us be able to change even the system ui look, which is only possible by rooting and flashing a rom.

On the other hand ios has a lot more it can do with it’s functionality and is still 3 years behind in that department, sharing is still limited to what apple says you can share, no default apps, ect just to name a few, even the multitasking is horrible you have to wait for the animation to finish to swipe away the next one, on android you just swipe away really continually without waiting.

Truth is both have a lot more they can improve on than people think, most of them may not be visually but offering more function and a deeper level of customizing can always get better.

ArchAngel570

I think “Apple catches up” would be a more accurate title. Maybe all the money spent on lawsuits finally caught up to Apple. They must have lost their R&D budget.

VirtualMark

Agreed. This is possible the stupidest title for an article I’ve ever seen on this site. It’s not the most accurate article either.

fsakw2k

You are right. The title of the article is misleading. It should read, “Apple finally catches up with iOS improvements”

crescentdave

Apple DIDN’T catch up. It still falls behind in multi-tasking, nfc, and notifications. And should we really not talk about widgets and customization? Seriously?

http://www.facebook.com/datkidfromawendaw Clay Johnson

Catching up, and being caught up does not mean the same thing.

Epic Tea

catches up??? their still 3 years behind android, no default apps, no customization, limited sharing capabilities, limited ecosystem, just to name a few.

Android is a fine OS and IOS is finally catching up to it. Regurgitating the press releases that Apple sends you is just embarrassing. It’s interesting. Just a few months ago no one even knew what skeuomorphism was, but then suddenly every review was telling us how passe it was and that we needed something different. If Apple had come out with a UI with red text on a green backgound you would be telling us how trend setting it is.

RyanWhitwam

You would think, but I prefer Android devices personally.

Martin Legris

If you do, what are you waiting to change the title to really reflect the content? Because right now; it’s a blatant lie.

http://geek.com/ sal cangeloso

Why can’t both be true? You can’t point out a shortcoming of something you like? Or say something nice about something that is not your preference?

K MC

“It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.”
-Aristotle

So, agreed.

Neiv Gabay

What does that mean?

Neiv Gabay

What does that mean?

dsfa

You can, if its true, which it isnt.

Aamir Islam

The truth is that Android is not “Stagnating.”

Techutante

I think it’s funny that you’re using the phase “stagnation” to describe something that hasn’t changed in like, a couple months? And the next article up the list is about how Google is taking on totally random new technologies and life extension, they are obviously a company ALL about stagnation.

Max

This is an odd article. The writer states how much better IOS7 is over Android 4.3 yet, the first 3 comparisons fall in Androids favor, the camera comparison goes in favor of Apple but even the last comparison kind of favors Android. I don’t know if the writer is high or if he just gave the wrong title to the article before actually reading his own work.

VirtualMark

And at the end it says Android may “turn the tables” with the release of KitKat. Lol!

VegasDude73

LOL gotta be a bait and switch article haha

Plyphon

My S4 takes far better photos than any of my mates iPhone 5 so I’m not even really sure how the iPhone can win the camera debate either :S

serg

its called bias

zeth006

I remember when I used to make similar mistakes in my essays…back in elementary school. 4th grade teacher used to berate me for coming up with really bad titles.

10+ years later, we see tech bloggers, hopefully all adults, making similar mistakes.

zeth006

I remember when I used to make similar mistakes in my essays…back in elementary school. 4th grade teacher used to berate me for coming up with really bad titles.

10+ years later, we see tech bloggers, hopefully all adults, making similar mistakes.

Felix

So… Apple took giant leaps to adopt features and functionality that Android has had for about 2 years? I don’t get it. Camera aside, which probably wouldn’t have been possible to do with the old hardware, every single thing mentioned here was introduced in Honeycomb or ICS in 2011, with a few updates following with Jelly Bean last year. Even the faster phone to phone sharing is likely to be included in Kit Kat, considering the purchase of Bump. So where exactly is the leap? I don’t consider saying “yeah!! we now have what others had in 2011!!” a giant leap. The only truly new thing is a 64 bit iOS.

Has Moh

On my droid dna I have slow mo video like htc sense has had this for a while

Richard Yarrell

All I could is welcome to the real world welcome to the real party Apple users. I have been using android handsets since 2009 and nothing has compared to android for so long it’s comical. Basic android users are usually more technically sound and understand devices capabilities and what to do if they want to change elements or aspects of there device. Plain and simple Android owns Apple always has and always will.

squiddy20

“Basic android users are usually more technically sound and understand devices capabilities” This coming from the same guy who seriously told me rooting was “2plus year old devices”, but then a few months later was claiming to be “looking into” rooting his Galaxy Nexus (the easiest phone to root, mind you) for 2 whole months. “Technically sound” my a**.

Richard Yarrell

All I could is welcome to the real world welcome to the real party Apple users. I have been using android handsets since 2009 and nothing has compared to android for so long it’s comical. Basic android users are usually more technically sound and understand devices capabilities and what to do if they want to change elements or aspects of there device. Plain and simple Android owns Apple always has and always will.

lj0000

Disagreed. Its more like android being the pioneer and apple playing catching up. Not surprised ios8 will feature customizable home screen and iphone6 will have 5″ screen. its just matter of time and pride.

lj0000

Disagreed. Its more like android being the pioneer and apple playing catching up. Not surprised ios8 will feature customizable home screen and iphone6 will have 5″ screen. its just matter of time and pride.

Steve

I think the most comical part is where the author says “Only the tiniest sliver of the Android ecosystem is on 4.3″.

I say that, because this same author wrote the following article, stating that 43.1% of android devices now run Jelly Bean. That’s a little bigger then the “tiniest sliver” that he says in this post.

And lets not forget that only the iPhone 4 and newer can get iOS7. Even then, only the iPhone 5 and newer gets ALL of the features that iOS7 brings to the table.

Nicolas Klein

Jelly Bean accounts for 4.1, 4.2 and 4.3 , therefore both statements are NOT incompatible

Steve

My mistake!

I still believe you’d find that many of the features discussed here still show up on the Jelly Bean devices. And it does not detract from the fact that the fully capabilities will only be available on iPhone 5+.

Kai

It’s true that not all iDevice get the same functions, but still it’s pretty far fetched to say that the Android OS version situation is even remotely close to that of iOS. I write Android apps for a living so while I find many Android “fragment” articles to be complete garbage, it is still true that the fact that we still have to keep support for OS versions up to 3 years old, and all the different UI styles that entails, to be a gigantic pain in the ass.

Steve

My mistake!

I still believe you’d find that many of the features discussed here still show up on the Jelly Bean devices. And it does not detract from the fact that the fully capabilities will only be available on iPhone 5+.

Nicolas Klein

Jelly Bean accounts for 4.1, 4.2 and 4.3 , therefore both statements are NOT incompatible

d40s

Wait wait wait wait wait. Apple taking all of Androids features (Live wallpapers… really?) and this is HUGE LEAPS and android is Stagnant with such things as restricted profiles, changing the code around to push the graphics, adding even more features to the camera app, among other things… I just… you…. are an iDiot. Please, never write another article in your life. You are too stupid for this earth.

http://theseonut.com/ Adam

I agree with you, but come on man. No need to make it personal.

sauerquint

I actually believe in holding the author to the very standards they have held others to. So, yes indeed, there is a need to make this personal. The author in clearly writing an article to solicit more Ad revenue, and nothing else. In other words, the authors iS stupid, and the term iDiot used to describe people like that is completely appropriate.

Adam Jones

lol We have a crappy nokia flip phone from 2001 at work that we use for an alarm and it has live wallpapers. Android certainly did not invent that feature

Marc Laferriere

Reading this article was a waste of 2 minutes of my life.

sean

It’s bulls hit people don’t get it android is whining the floor with apple because apple is just drop thing where they should have put in before they did anything but they didn’t because they didn’t want to because they want it for money
but some people don’t get it they are wasting money something that isn’t even worth the time and money because it has to much problems with the ios, android It’s a open source program

Teslim Olunlade

you can’t compare android to ios because android comes in many variants unlike ios so from all those screenshots of android you were taking screenshots from the samsung galaxy without including htc’s sense 5, or google nexus’s ui, or the Motorola’s droids

Scott Jackson

If I’m ET I fire this guy if he doesn’t change the title of the article. It’s embarrassingly inaccurate and misleading.

Scott Jackson

If I’m ET I fire this guy if he doesn’t change the title of the article. It’s embarrassingly inaccurate and misleading.

Cj Pomerantz

Right? I was just coming to comment that. It’s almost exactly the opposite of what the article says. Editor get you Ess together!

Scott Jackson

Its amazing how Sebastian Anthony and this guy claim to prefer Android over Apple yet their writing reflects the exact opposite. Is Apple paying these guys on the side or what?

1bmwdrvr1

This fellow is a LIAR or worse, a “Yellow Journalist”!
His editor must be ashamed. After reading a few comments I see I am not alone in my realization that Extreme Tech. is nothing but an Apple Fanboi “rag” … Shame on you!
You don’t have to bash others to bolster your own beliefs… Just be happy Android (Google) is happy to have Apple “ape” it’s operating system…

RyanWhitwam

I am genuinely fascinated that people assume I’m an Apple Fanboy because I said nice things about Apple.

Phobos

They assume for a reason. I frankly don’t care but where is the vs? Instead all we got its “hey check the new features the IPhone has”

Anonymization

Some people assume quickly – it’s life. But even that aside, you got to admit your article is definitely biased. Anyone with a brain (whether they are biased towards either OS or not) can see that.

raid98

I’m “fascinated” that you are “fascinated” that people are assuming you are a Apple Sheeple. Did you read your own article? Did you read the topic you wrote for this article?

Apple is barely playing catch up and its still lags far behind Android 4.3 in many ways, you even say so in parts of your own article. Yet, you make it seem like Android needs to do something in KitKat so it “might turn the tables on Apple.” ?? What?? Turn the table on an inferior OS that’s trying to catch up to it?? Android is already crushing iOS in real world sales, thats why Apple is trying its hardest to copy every worthwhile feature from Android and even Windows phones.

Garan Copas

Please, If you wanna put sales into it. The one and only reason android out sales ios is due to the amount of devices which run it. Compare any single android device to a i phone i can think of only ONE off the top of my head that actually beat the iphone in sales..

Kai

Maybe that’s because on Android people can get a device that meet their needs quite precisely instead of a single yes or no choice?

Kevin S

That’s a stupid argument. If you want to compare sales of two OSs you have to take into account all the phones manufactured that run each OS. If you want to compare Corporations then Apple compared to, say Samsung, would restrict it to iPhone vs the Galaxy S series and guess what; the phone running android still wins.

Sidd

My sales are higher than yours but the numbers are only high bcos I sell from a single shop and you sell from a chain of shops!! Is that what you were trying to say??

accolade

this would be like arguing that the Windows PC doesn’t beat out the Mac in marketshare for the simple fact that there are numerous vendors making PCs with Windows to just one producer of the Mac, Apple

Phobos

So where are the benchmarks of ios7 vs Android 4.3?
Total BS, ET is not what it used to be.

REVS

LMAO AT THIS TITLE …..SHOULD BE “I07 PLAYING CATCH UP”

http://theseonut.com/ Adam

What is with these bias reviews? I’ve yet to read a unbiased objective review on this update so far. Android stagnates? Do you even use any android devices? There were a lot of false statements in the article as well, FYI. I’m not biased, I actually use IOS more than android, but this update seemed like a copy of a lot of android features…..so how can android be the stagnating one? I don’t get why people that are Pro Apple refuse to accept that Apple isn’t the best. It’s getting a bit ridiculous. Don’t get me wrong, IOS is still a great mobile OS, but Android is superior in most scenarios. This is coming from someone who uses both on a daily basis….a lot. I’m just a lot more productive on Android. Android is far from stagnating, but they could afford to if they chose. IOS is clearly playing catch up on the mobile OS war.

ac1dra1n

Android is not stagnant. Google, from my perspective, is working on under-the-hood stuff. They have a new feature every now and then but the amount of work they have put into under-the-hood improvements is astonishing and noticeable.

Richard

iOS gets features that Android has had for ages, copies look and feel of Android, yet somehow Android is stagnating??? WTF???

CG

What are you smoking?

coyote_ptm

and the keyboard still sucks….

kingofthisnight

I can see the future headline now “iOS 7.1 now has a swipe keyboard, Android Stagnates”

The author is so biased towards Apple! “Apple takes giant leaps while Android stagnates”? Apple has been catching up and is still behind even with IOS7. Also “Apple has been consistently in the lead when it comes to snapping pics”? How so? Samsung devices are far ahead of apples incredibly limited camera app and I’m sure the other flagship devices are too. This author is Apple bias…

Raymond Rodgers

Just curious why you’re stating that Android is stagnating on a iOS 7 review when the next version of Android, 4.4, has only been announced, not released. There have been no publicly released features for “KitKat” and even if there had been, it’s a “point” release, a revision rather than a whole new version as had been previously expected. It doesn’t seem logical to call a point release stagnation when Apple frequently makes point releases available… Perhaps you should retroactively call all of those stagnant. If when Android 5.0 comes around it really hasn’t made any changes since 4.4, then I’ll agree with you on the stagnant nature, but that hasn’t been the case between any two major releases of Android since 1.x to 2.x. (Even then there were significant changes.)

mori bund

The trolling-headline is miles away from serious journalism, just a sad effort to get more clicks from angry Android-fans.

Considering that Ryan Whitwam also writes for Android Police, I highly doubt he came up with this moronic title.

Ared

lol, android hasnt changed much in the last year, hahhaaaha, that says it all. The fact that you expect android to change drastically within a year shows how rapidly it has progress throughout its life. IOS has stayed pretty much the same for SIX years!!! Its taken them this long to even have the same BASIC functionalities of android, which apple have copied unashamedly in the IOS7 calling it “revolutionary”.
you say that you prefer android phone but it sounds like you have never picked one up in your life.

ps: wait until kitkat is revealed, then you can make your comments.

Garan Copas

while everyone knows everyone copies from everyone. You can’t discount the fact 90% of the features apple has (*stolen*) from android they have dramatically improved and made them better than their android counterpart. That being said. I can so see google improving beam to function like air drop lol.

k.

I just switched from iphone to andriod. My phone already had all the features they put in ios 7 and a whole lot more and apple has yet to add to the iphone. With that said andriod is still better than iphone even though apple took features that andriod had for 2-3 years now and still manages to be basic. andriod is far more superior still. and youd think iphone would be like a super phone after copying andriod with ios 7. lol NOT.

un_aligned

So what you’re saying is that iOS7 finally brings it in line with Android. Ok, cool.

un_aligned

So what you’re saying is that iOS7 finally brings it in line with Android. Ok, cool.

dvt

Giant leaps for apple, small step for android.

Brian Thorp

Oh gee a subversion of android isn’t improving things much while a major version of iOS catches up. These articles are so biased for shock its a wonder I even come here for tech news anymore…

virtualharassment

Apple stole a lot from Android on this update, and yet the Apple zombies will champion it as “innovation”

eberts0604

Weird. My daughters (who of course have iPhones) were all up in arms last night about the “lameness” of the new iOS. Apparently everyone in their demographic is complaining about it on Twitter. This article doesn’t touch on that controversy. The headline doesn’t match body. Was this written by Apple’s PR department?

Not to mention constant improvements to all of Google’s apps throughout the year. New versions of Gmail, Maps, Chrome, gTalk/Hangouts, Youtube, and major Google Play Store updates including their own streaming music service. Updates that are not tied to the latest OS version (like apple) but should be counted towards Android’s pace of innovation.

Besides, 90% of iOS7’s features are actually features that Android already has: Control Center, Notification Center, True Multitasking, Siri/Google Now upgrades, and Photo Filters.

Sanjay Negi

Apple and Google both should focus on creating safe, clean and awesome os for gadgets rather than doing nonsense things.

Android has been evolving at a steady pace while iOS has been stagnant until they “rebooted” it with iOS7.

Yes. A reboot. Like in the movies.

Joni Ikäläinen

Android haven’t changed much because they’re using resources on android 5.0 which will be released later this year…

John Kiser

4.4 is later this year which will be kitkat. 5.0 Will not be out until next year at some point.

RationalUser

I am sick and tired of dispelling myths regarding the goodness of Apple… Here is some food for thought for all Apple fanboys –

Myth
1: About 80% traffic comes from iOS devices… it could be that iOS
uses more data than Android to perform similar tasks… you should not
forget that Apple is one of the worst offenders in collecting anonymous
data and sending it to NSA database. That could also prop up data usage

Myth
2: Eric Schmidt was on the BoD… The BoD are there to oversee that
CXOs are performing well and to protect investors and other
stakeholders’ interest. It was Apple, who appointed Eric as one of board
members… they must have gain something from his expertise. Being
ordinary soul, we don’t know in which direction did the information
flow. So please stop bragging about it already

Myth 3: Apple
created world’s first smartphone… Please refer to wikipedia (or for
more accurate information, Google) that Palm, Blackberry and to some
extent Nokia’s Communicator were all smartphones… You can also argue
to the point that the first cellphone was created by Motorola and then
everybody else (inc. Apple) copied it… Apple also has a long history
of copying stuff from elsewhere… think about GUI (graphical user
interface) from Xerox

Myth 4: Android copies iOS: None of that
is true… It is a very different software. I have used both (iOS and
later Android) and being a techie I can say that even the way messaging,
protocols, networking, etc. all system processes are all handled
differently in iOS and Android. Moreover think about Widgets,
Notification bar, home screen, debugging capabilities (only geeks would
understand that)… and host of other Android features now being copied
by Apple

Myth 5: Multiple vendors and open source are crap: I am a
true believer of competition. Having open source software and
flexibility to implement it on multiple hardware vendors makes Android
accessible to mass population. You can buy the best performing Android
at £500 or you can spend £50 to get its flavour… that in my view makes
technology touch many lives. It also fosters creativity and builds on
each other’s strengthMyth 6: Apple is ethical: Apple by all means
is just like another corporation. In some respects, it is worse than
the worst tech firms out there. Apple makes a clean £300 profit on each
iPhone sold… doesn’t pay or pays least amount of tax. Search on Google
(again for accuracy) – FT Apple Corporation Tax Fraud… you will get
your answers. It has mind boggling US$100 billion sitting in its bank
account. No sane company would carry that much cash in its balance
sheet. It would rather invest in R&D… oops forgot to mention that
R&D in Apple is not just sitting on its laurels as you can guess by
the incremental innovation they have been involved in for that last 3
years ever since iPhone 4S was launched… nothing major has changed.
Hardware upgrades follow the basic lifecycle… nothing groundbreaking
as of now. Not to mention at last that Apple wants to tie you up with
their own ‘everything’ making you slave for their outdated technology

Ovi

iOS7 “evolved” by thinking of the same features that older versions of Windows Phone and Android did??? :):):) Wooow
Let’s just wait and see what Kit Kat will be like :) Then compare it to iOS7.

I must Android 4.3 is amazing, smooth, and apps don’t crash like they do on the iPhone. I find that hilarious because 2-3 years ago it used to be the other way around. My Nexus 4 is also smoother than the iPhone 5, which again a few years ago I would have thought impossible.

All the universal options that Android has and that are slowly becoming mainstream, like Miracast, wireless charging, NFC, Wi-Fi Direct are already a huge step up from iOS, while Apple devices are stuck with their own protocols only.

Also app integration.. I had NO clue that iOS users basically just get a Share on FB button, instead of being able to share with many of the installed apps, or sharing to cloud storage, or to cloud printing, or to NFC, etc.

They still can’t pick default apps. lol. No form of widgets or customizable way to get information with is counterproductive.

I was actually hoping Apple would stop being stubborn but I guess you can’t blame them for not taking risks.

Bret Taylor

Um I feel all these articles ive been reading leave out an important detail. Kit-kat.

New refreshed look is nice.
Many of options that were buried are now more on the surface or available for a quick access is very nice.
But it is still very painfully iOS.. where one design is meant to fit all.
What if I do not like it? Like how everything is just too bright in colors and I need to tone it down..?
What if I want to simplify options in control center?
What if I want to add something else on there?

As Apple and Android user, I still applause Apple for a big step in the right direction, but they still have lot to catch up to Android.
Starting with option to change or add default apps, widgets and keyboards.

Plyphon

Something rarely discussed is App management in Android.

1: The ability to close all apps with 1 button.
Unless it’s changed in iOS 7 it used to frustrate me no end having to tap the small X on every open app – on my new S4 I just hit the close all button and it’s done.

2: Move to SD
Simply fantastic. Even though the OS doesn’t move *all* files over it moves enough onto the SD that it saves significant space on the phone itself.

3: Widets
Super handy. Nuff said. Why should I have to open a weather app to view weather? Just use a widget!

4: Launchers and customization.
Love how I can adjust how many rows & columns I have on my S4’s desktop, and the size of each icon just by installing a simple launcher. The launcher even allows me to lock the desktop so I don’t end up moving icons by accident in my pocket.

Launchers are by far the best advantage over iOS. They don’t really take away from the Android feel, just add a layer of options to really tailor your device to you.

Brilliant.

Johnny English

Stupid, biased and one-sided title, not even worth reading.

Joel Detrow

If you read it, you’d see they conclude that iOS 7 is just getting it up to parity with Android, and that while it has some undeniable advantages (zero fragmentation), it still falls short of Android’s capabilities and popularity, and Android is also due for an update soon which should widen the gap.

Kevin S

tbh, I’ve spent more time reading comments than reading the article.

ackthbbft

Wow, it only took Apple how many years to steal the webOS “card” multitasking and swipe-to-close?

JD Rahman

Apple and Android seem to have the opposite ends of the spectrum covered with their UI. Android is a bit dull, on stock

iOS looks like a clown threw up on a screen. Way too much color

But, Android still has the upper hand because you can change the UI with apps and themes, even without rooting. With iOS, I believe the customization options are a bit limited.

gierso

iOS looks like a clown threw up on a screen. Way too much color

Guest

IOS and Andoid OS are completely different, you can’t compare Web Activity really, For IOS you are requred to go into the web when you’re trying to view facebook or update your status. that is a given, you have to go into the app itself that will essentually use more Data. For Android there are widgets which pretty much let you glance at your phone and in most cases move on. I can add a bank widget on my phone. So here is how checking my balance goes: Android: Unlock phone, switch to widget screen look at balance. Iphone: unlock, switch to app screen, load app, app will of course load more data and keep you on your phone slightly longer, and BAM you see your bank account. That will make IOS have more web traffic of course. That doesn’t mean it’s better, it just means that it used up more time. But of course, in Fanboy Views and Apple views this is greater.

On a different note: You have an option of 2 phones, Galaxy 4s and Iphone 5S: Iphone 5S has it’s features but the Galaxy S4 has those features (excluding the scanner and 64 bit processor which let’s face it, iphone won’t really use as most people just use it to open apps) and has plenty more with it. The S4 is prices lower than the Iphone 5S, I would much rather get the S4, remove all it’s so called “gimmicks”(which apple will eventually put on its next itirations) and keep the ones the iphone has. essentually i can have the same phone, with a larger screen and payed less for it. “oh wait but it’s plastic” well news flash, If you dont like plastic, why must you put a plastic cover on your iphone? does the plastic protect it better than it’s shell?

Most android fans Talk smack about Iphone because they have actually compared the 2, Iphone users haven’t really used Android they just go by what apple Tells Them. If you invest as much money on your android device as you do on your iphone i am sure you will see the difference.

Those are my 2 cents.

Marci Neigh

So, I must have missed something, how has Android stagnated? All that’s happened is Apple has caught up to most of Androids already existing features, which Android is still improving.

kevinkee

The author, if I am not mistaken, view it from the angle where Android and iOS are two different ecosystems, which is true. It’s a big change from iOS 6 to 7, but not much from earlier Android version to the current Android version (whichever it is). Hence, stagnant.

liveTexas

If Grossly Inaccurate statements like these are the standard your site uses then you’ve lost (at least) 1 reader. Fact-checking was not used on this article. Allowing this type of “unbiased” reporting leaves a deep, dark stain on your site’s credibility.
Goodbye.

Paul

I have had every iPhone from the iPhone 3S to 4S. What I’m seeing is iPhone starting to look more like Android if not outright ripping off Android, need I say Control Panel? I find the look to remind me of something between Android and MS Metro. Tiles no, but the animation of the icons yes.

Needless to say my next phone will probably be an Android

Hikaru Uzma

“Apple takes giant leaps while Android stagnates” this is a joke, right? if not, how much did apple paid for this article? everything “new” with ios7 was made available with android users for 2 or 3 years ago..

γιαννης

so by copying almost all the good stuff from android 4.2 apple did a giant leap

yes i can i see clearly now there is no bias in that article at all

you should have thought more clearly that ios infact didnt do a leap infact is going backward because apple has only one phone and they cant think of new features while google needs to develop android for millions different types of phones infact google needs to make leaps because of that

gierso

yes they did a giant Leap… just not an original one :P
even the glass effect is a windows 7 aero rippoff

i have everything on my nexus 4
only true thing in the article is the 4.3 being on few devices, but with the new play services many of the things can be programmed now in a froyo & up device :)

http://www.fazzi.eng.br/ Marcus Fazzi

A great Apple fanboy article!

Ashantis_Sideburns

I’m sorry but your article is stupid, just as stupid as the hundreds of thousands standing n line right now to buy an iPhone…i was able to do these things with my android phone and tablet years ago. I now own an HTC One and it’s still a much superior product than the iPhone.

Adamsbrew78

How is it possibly superior when the vast majority of developers prefer ios and release apps and games first on ios, some never porting to android. ? Every single person I’ve ever encountered taking your position on android is not at all knowledgeable about what’s available on the apple App Store. To make it simple, go spend a few minutes comparing the audio and musician oriented apps on each. Look for big names like Korg, Roland, Native Instruments, Etc … What you’ll find is NO counterparts what-so-ever on the android side.,

Next, look up the games on each. Last few weeks and months, xcom enemy unknown, Star Wars knights of old republic, Collin McRae rally,…and countless original games by top dele elopes in the business. Much of this will never see the light of day on android…. So you get a device that holds its value because of all this, so when it comes time to upgrade you never have trouble getting a large amount of money selling your old unit…… Why on earth would anyone waste money on android junk unless it’s a super cheap tablet just to do mundane tasks with??

This article talks a lot of iOS, 3 pictures about Android vs 9 pictures about iOS.

Esa Syt

This entire websites and it’s staff are Apple fanboys. Just like PhoneArena. All sheeps.

Adamsbrew78

So you prefer android..why? .. I simply prefer the fact that the majority of developers prefer ios ..which means way more great games and useful apps come out on ios first and half of those never get ported to android. It’s not just the gaming arena that is superior, it’s every single application category. Go compare the audio synths on ios to that of android ? As for games, what great titles have been released or ported lately to android? Xcom enemy unknown, Star Wars knights of the old republic, Collin McRae rally..just to name a few in the last few weeks. A new console quality title every week.,..every week… Now why would you call people who prefer vast superiority to be “sheep”? That’s the big question.

Adam Jones

lol The fandroids on here are hilarious. You praise android for being open source and then complain when other people use the functionality. There’s a giant difference between having a ton of features and having them well designed and implemented nicely. All the features ios added that android has had are better versions of the android version. That is of course a subjective opinion but still give credit where it is due, ios7 is a great operating system

sc2pilot

I’m glad IOS is finally implementing features that have been in Android for years and years. There is still no true multitasking though, so all of that CPU horsepower is basically useless. Also, still no USB OTG, no AVRCP (but a proprietary version of it that only works with apple-blessed devices), no DLNA, no customizing the soft keyboard, no attaching Dropbox images to SMS messages, no true HD native resolution (movies are either scaled weirdly or letterboxed, taking away some of the tiny tiny screen space), no FM radio, still not compliant with the USB charging spec, still no support for multiple users… and so on.

IOS is still living in the last decade.

Aamir Islam

I can just smell the bias. The truth of the matter is that Android is a much more customizable experience with much more features, and most of the the features listed as a pro for Apple is what was already in Android. So in reality, Apple is taking giant leaps to get closer to the Android experience, but they aren’t even close. You’re stuck with whatever Apple want you to have, same keyboard, same interface, ect. Android’s app store will give you hundreds of themes, hundreds of keyboards, widgets(which Apple SERIOUSLY doesn’t have yet, what’s the deal?), ect. In all reality, Android is where the innovation is happening, Apple is playing catch up.

Gideon Alvin White

you’re joking right? All ios 7 did was COPY ANDROID! you CANNOT be that biased! Stagnated? HA!

Slammamon

iOS for the win. So much smoother, nicer looking, and minimal. None of this ‘chuck as many features as we can on a phone’ that Android seems to think is a great idea. Making technology simple is why Apple rose up in the first place. I love my iDevices

Jeffrey Scott Anderson

Much like a rotary phone. Smooth, no problems, nice looking, and minimal. If it continues, they will both have the same fate

Slammamon

No problems? What about having to turn the dial for every number.

So you’re saying Android isn’t smooth, has problems, is ugly, and is overflowing with features? You’d be right there.

http://www.vinnyfonseca.com/ Vinny Fonseca

I subscribed to ExtremeTech because of some amazing articles about quantum computing that were so well explained I couldn’t find similar articles anywhere else. It became my favorite tech publication for quite some time. And then, this.

This article makes ExtremeTech look really bad. I wish someone had intervened before it was published. Please editor, check the facts before going full iSheep.

Guest

funny how he uses touchwiz drop down notifications, when that is not true pure android, sorry but when your talking samsung, HTC or any others I don’t consider them pure android, Nexus is true android.

Epic Tea

when will people realize copying shouldn’t be consider a problem, tvs, cars, ect all are copies of each other in both big and small things, copying helps innovation along and offers us consumers better products and better product experiences.

Example , I use android but I like the idea of power toggles being swiped up from the bottom as apple has done, I think they improvement upon android;s version especially on the massive android phones out today.

Epic Tea

still 3 years behind android, no default apps, no customization, limited sharing capabilities, limited no universal ecosystem (google’s is universal, mac, pc, ios, android you name it it works on it), just to name a few.

J Dub

What a freaking click bait title. I came looking for ways that Apple had improved over Android only to find out it’s a story about how iOS is just now getting features that Android has had for a while. Is this not what the article is about?

Brandon Petruska

I think people arguing about which device or mobile operation system is “the best” is pointless. It all comes down to what the users preferences are, how they use their smart phone, and what they expect from it in terms of functionality.

I used Android for two years before switching to iOS. I’m not going to insult Google here because, like i said, what I see as a fault someone else might see as a misunderstood feature. I don’t have a Mac, but I do use iTunes (and did even when I had my Android). I then purchased the iPad. I had options when it came to what tablet I wanted, but I went with an iPad because, for me, it was the most stable and useful one available for my needs. I then purchased an AppleTV because it integrated so well with my iTunes purchases as well as my iPad.

Ultimately, the decision came whether to stick with Android or move to iOS. Android could be customized however I saw fit and, more importantly, it is what I was used to. However, I made the move to the iPhone 5 because all of the essential things I needed from my Android I could get from the iPhone. Not to mention, the iPhone was integrated into my home network flawlessly and, fortunately, there was no learning curve since I already used iOS on my iPad.

iOS 7 was a relief. I finally got some of the features I missed from Android. I’m not going to say whether the way one presents these features is superior to the other, but I have noticed in the last year of using the iPhone that my software updates are stable and reliable. I also know my iPhone wont be obsolete in a few years, should I choose to stick with it for that long.

iOS needs to continue taking lessons from Android in terms of features, but Android needs to learn from iOS how to seamlessly integrate these features. It’s that simple.

j¤n Gårrëtt [5,000+]

whats unseamless about Android?

Silverminers

So by copying Android, that’s a big leap forward? LOL, how much did Apple pay you to write this?

Statik514

Ios7 is easier to use and more fluid. I have an iphone 5 and an s4. The s4 lags big time when scrolling down on the comments. The eye tracking and air gestures are gimmicks and frustrating to use. I just turn them off. Ios7 is very smoth especially going back and forth webpages with a simple swipe. From a user experience ios7 is more seemless than android. Maybe android is more customizable but most people beside the few geeks dont bother with that. They want a smartphone that works good from the start.

j¤n Gårrëtt [5,000+]

Ryan is d!ck plain and simple. iOS rips a dozen features that Android has had for years and he writes this bullsh!t article!

Chaz Jackson

If you could only read it, use it without crazy popups constantly and learn the new features it might be ok, but who will ever know?

Mismagius

Personally, I FAR preferred iOS 6. The new design is so plain and simplistic, and there are all sorts of stupid, unnecessary, animations, that mean, among other things, that I can’t fit the whole picture in as a wallpaper (move and scale my butt, it just reverts back to the way it was once you lift your fingers). And everything’s so WHITE now. Like the photo album, not only does all that white waste energy but it’s distracting from the picture and way to bright. If only I could downgrade…. :(

I’m just waiting for samsung’s youm to come out. It’s the first truly original thing is ages.

ITellEasternEuroChicksIBeACEO#

Android looks like my space. Hideous!

Justanonbiasedguy

I still can’t hold down on my Settings toggles on iOS7 to get to the corresponding page like I can in 4.3. This is a big issue for a power user like me.

Jason

Apple iOS was first released in 2007,while Android OS was first released in 2008.So it’s unintelligent to say apple copied android as many people said here without thinking.In reality Android is a copy of Apple and Apple is based on unix kernel,but android is based on unix like kernel.Android eats up RAM like an unoptimized system,but not so in iOS.Thus battery backup in iOS is better than in Android OS.

Caio Vianna Lima Netto

Sorry but how did Android stagnate and iOS leaps if ALL (and I do mean ALL) nwew iOS7 features are just catching up to Android features? Air Drop = attempt to get to NFC (terrible, Bluetooth+WiFi, really? get out of here), Multitasking? No, still directive oriented, you have a dozen of “classes” a task can have, and the iOS will allow some CPU time according to their class, not to mention some classes can have only one process. The ILLUSION of multitask comes from the rip-off task switcher, that’s all. Try run 40 different apps at the same time and you will see where that goes. Notification and Control Center? HELLO? Ever used android? Live wallpapers, I mean, “Dinamic Wallpapers”, a simpler more androidish UI. And then, well, you have so many other options in Android that Apple still can copy, so I bet next iOS will still do LEAPS in your book while Android stays “stagnant” … in front.

play video

Hey Ryan, you call yourself a journalist? How much did Apple pay you?

Vicky Bro

Android as an OS is no doubt more advanced than ios. But ios is much more than that. The app ecosystem in ios is much more lucid and quality is heavily controlled by apple. No junk apps. Many apps exclusive to the iphone. For example CortexCam (super resolution camera app). Overall the experience is much nicer and better. Apple’s garden may be walled but it is surely the most beautiful garden around.

NonAppleholic

Yeah…. a Giant Leap Backwards…. stealing Microsoft’s Blue Screen BSOD’s and Android’s 3D Live backgrounds. Android had 3D Paralax Photo Apps for over 2 yrs and at least one your own photos to 3D Paralax Live Desktop backgrounds since last year!

That’s progress? lol…. Copying the competition’s features like you invented them in the first place. Sorry but Apple firing Scott Forstall and putting the biggest idea thief ever in charge of iOS development was the wrong way to go. Apparently being proven on a daily basis with more iPhone users trying to get back to iOS 6! ….so what did Apple do? They pulled another Microsoft boner and blocked the ability to downgrade!

Smart Move Ex-Lax for Apple? Not!!!

MBat

The title is a joke, right? I dont even…

Sim Kern Cheh

Hey maybe you should include the enhancements made through Google Play Services over the course of Android Jellybean. Instead of bundling as many features as possible and releasing Android as a new iteration to create hype, Google is clearly incrementally updating their suite of services over time.

Sy

Both are even android copies apple and apple copies android , android have root
Apple have cydia

Dave Lambert

the fact is that android had everything ios7 has for a while now but apple being apple acts like a whole new generation of technology has come and loyal apple customers like fools believe it.

Lance Lee

In the first place, 4.3 is just an incremental update. wait for 5.0 next year, I have a feeling that 4.4 is just a beta test for Android Run Time. iOS 7 is the biggest update ever since iOS started while Android has encountered big changes in every update

Roland Homoki

Apple just catches up….

Amel Jose

If you mean copying android by “giant leaps”..

Ryan Matson

The reason Android “stagnated” was due to the fact that it already had most of these features. 4.3 was only a small update aimed at improving performance. 4.4, on the other hand, IS a real update.

ChrisGX

The quality of commentary on smart phones is extremely poor. It is mostly fanboy stuff without a hint of a grasp of the difference between the trivial and irrelevant and things that matter. Regarding this “better than Android” line, well if something functionally better than Android was being reviewed, e.g. Blackberry, Sailfish or Ubuntu, it would amount to something otherwise it is just verbiage. Here’s an idea that would amount to something, what about a phone UI that would facilitate application multitasking and the chaining of application functions and tasks so that the phone could realise some of its potential rather than just be a discussion topic for fanboys.

http://www.mobiers.com/ Mobiers.com

They both are best OS with all new features added on them. If you are android lover then you must go for the Android KitKat phones vice versa.

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